


Mind the Tide (It Takes You in)

by Phoebe_Snow



Category: Star Wars Prequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe, Conversations, F/M, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, Hopeful Ending, I probably did a bad job of explaining the Jedi code about attachments, Imagine your OTP, Jedi, Missing Scene, Obidala is the most underrated ship in all of Star Wars, POV Alternating, Romance, The Author Regrets Nothing, but that’s okay because they were a mess anyway, don't argue with me okay?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-13
Updated: 2020-09-13
Packaged: 2021-03-06 22:28:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,686
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26436439
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Phoebe_Snow/pseuds/Phoebe_Snow
Summary: Obi-Wan thanks Padmé for coming to his rescue and they end up having a deeper discussion than planned. AoTC AU.
Relationships: Padmé Amidala/Obi-Wan Kenobi
Comments: 12
Kudos: 57





	Mind the Tide (It Takes You in)

**Author's Note:**

> I'm not a fan of Anidala at _all_ , so in this AU, they only kissed once at the lakeside retreat on Naboo. Also, Padmé never told Anakin that she loved him before they entered the arena because she doesn’t. This is very much an Obidala fanfic. Enjoy!❤️

* * *

When Obi-Wan saw his padawan, Anakin, and Padmé enter the arena, he was reasonably vexed. He’d specifically told his pupil to take care of the senator and keep her out of danger. In his mind, he grumbled that perhaps he should’ve sent Anakin out to investigate the person who hired Padmé’s would-be assassin instead of doing it himself.

The teenager did seem apologetic, but Obi was on the cranky side because once again, Anakin didn’t listen to him. He knew the boy was the chosen one, but he had a hard time taking orders and following instructions. As a child he’d been easier to handle, but as he grew older, so did his stubborn will and it was tiresome to continually lecture him.

As they left the planet, Anakin told his master that it was Padmé’s idea to rescue him. He went along with it because he was smart enough to know that he couldn’t stop her and he wanted to save his master too.

This information took Obi-Wan by surprise as he remembered quite clearly how, in the arena, Anakin said _they_ decided to rescue him. It was only later that the boy revealed the truth: Padmé was the one who made the decision to come for him.

They weren’t particularly close, but the Jedi felt gratitude towards her for her action, risky and foolish as it had been. He also was a bit flattered.

From the moment they met years ago, Obi-Wan knew that young Queen Padmé Amidala was independent and could be quite stubborn when she chose to be. This was something she shared in common with Anakin, but she had maturity on her side and she didn’t allow her emotions to rule her as his padawan did. When she made up her mind about something, no one could convince her otherwise.

She loved her people dearly and considered herself to be a pacifist, but wasn’t afraid to fight if it was her last resort. As a politician, she was skilled at diplomacy and although Obi-Wan had a disdain for politicians and their ilk, he was rather fond of Padmé. She was trustworthy and made him feel at ease whenever he was near her.

In fact, the more he thought about it, the more he believed he liked her a bit more than he should. Oh, he didn’t pine over her the way Anakin did, but he had an admiration for her. He was careful not to display it when he was around others and since he knew how to conceal his emotions, he was sure no one suspected anything.

Padmé was in the temple with him, waiting to visit Anakin after his mechanical arm was outfitted. She said she was there to cheer him up. Obi-Wan also came to the medical wing to brighten his padawan's mood, although she'd be the one the boy would be happier to see.

The hall was empty save for Padmé and Obi-Wan and he chose that moment to speak to her.

"I wanted to thank you for coming to rescue me on Geonosis. At first, I thought it was Anakin's idea, but he cleared things up later and told me that it was your idea."

She flushed, but sent him a tiny smile. "I only did what anyone would’ve done. You were in danger and there was no way I could leave you without aid. It has been some time since we last saw one another, but I've always considered us to be friends, Master Kenobi."

The sincerity in her voice made Obi-Wan's insides warm and he felt a trickle of pleasure spread throughout his being. _Easy, man. She hasn’t professed her undying love for you. If_ _anyone has caught her eye, it’s Anakin._

If he weren’t a Jedi, he’d say that he felt a bit jealous at the attraction between Anakin and Padmé. It wasn’t a secret that the young man adored her - perhaps was borderline obsessed and that was alarming as it was tiresome - and she seemed to return his feelings. But now, Padmé looked as if she were troubled by something.

"Is everything alright? You seem a little distressed." His brow furrowed in concern.

"Oh, it’s nothing. I’m just thinking about what the future holds for all of us. Poor Ani. I hope he’ll be able to adjust to his mechanical arm."

"I’m sure he will and he won’t be suffering through it alone. We have people to help him, of course." The Jedi paused for a moment, considering his next choice of words. "He’s fortunate to have such a good friend as you to look out for him."

Her eyes widened slightly and she fidgeted. "Yes. It has been a long time, but I’m glad I’ve been able to see him and you too. I know you and I haven’t kept in contact much during these past ten years, but I hope we can renew our friendship. That is, if you’d like to."

Obi felt his heart pound in his ears. A curious reaction, but he ignored it. It did him good to hear that Padmé wanted to be friends. "I would, actually." He sent her a small smile.

"Good. I was hoping you'd say that. Ani told me that you don’t care for politicians." The expression on her face wasn’t admonishing, merely curious and mildly amused.

Damn. That was the last time he said anything to his pupil. Why did Anakin have such loose lips? "For the most part I don’t, but you’re in a different class than the ones I’ve met. From what I see, you haven’t changed since we met ten years ago."

"Not even a little?" Now she grinned at him, showing her white teeth. "Goodness, and here I thought I was more impressive as a senator than a queen."

"I’ve always found you impressive, Padmé. Whether you were a queen, disguised handmaiden or senator, you’ve had an air of dignity and elegance that has never failed to take my interest." Obi-Wan said the words before he could stop himself, but he didn’t bother trying to take them back or stutter his way through an explanation.

The meaning behind the Jedi master's words sunk in. He had always noticed her, even when she thought he’d overlooked her back when her decoy had assumed her role as queen. There was always a tingle in her mind that said he might have known who she was when she revealed herself to the Gungans as Queen Amidala.

She remembered Obi-Wan give her a peculiar look, as if to say "I had my suspicions all along and you proved them right", but he never said anything to her about it.

"...you knew?"

He smiled. "I had a feeling that you were more than you seemed. Sabé was excellent and neither of you had any thoughts I could sense that gave away the truth. I noticed how your decoy would behave if anyone asked her something of great importance. She wouldn’t respond immediately, but wait for a facial clue from you to know what her answer should be."

"You must have trained Sabé very well for her to easily assume your role as queen and no one suspected. You showed wisdom akin to that of a Jedi. When you announced that you were the true queen to the Gungans, I think we all were quite impressed by your clever deception."

"That is high praise, thank you. I was very young when I was elected to be queen and even though I love my people, I knew that I needed to prepare myself for potential assassin nation attempts. Particularly due to our issues with the trade federation. I found three young women who looked enough like myself in and out of the ceremonial make up, so no one would be able to tell that we were completely different people. Then I taught them how to behave like me."

Obi nodded, admiration written on his face. "A masterfully executed plan. You could’ve been an actress in another life, Padmé. It would suit you well."

"I suppose so. It _did_ take a great amount of acting to keep people clueless about my true identity." She looked down at her fingers. Obi-Wan's praise made her heart pound against her chest and she was mildly confused by the reaction.

It’s not as if they were great friends, more like acquaintances, but she felt more comfortable with him than Anakin. The more she thought about it, the more she was embarrassed by the fact that she kissed his young padawan on Naboo. She supposed his pursuit of her had drawn her to him as well as his good looks, but there were things about his manner that alarmed her too much.

"Anakin cares for you a great deal."

She stared at him. Had her just read her mind? "And I care for him, but not in the way he would like."

"That is for the best, I believe. He has never stopped thinking of you ever since you met, and after all these years, he still pines for you. It’s dangerous."

Wanting to alter the topic of conversation, she said, "I don’t know much about the Jedi, but from what Ani has told me, you don’t approve of attachments?"

Obi-Wan knew what she was doing, but he didn’t comment on it. "That is usually the case, yes, but there have been some who had relationships and even marriages while being part of the Jedi Order. Relationships are altogether unavoidable because masters and padawans tend to share a bond like that of a parent and child. Qui-Gon raised me as a boy and I always saw him as a father, even when I became an adult."

Hearing this was a revelation and Padmé found herself leaning forward a bit in curiosity. "I had no idea it was like that for you."

"Yes. Attachments cannot truly be avoided in life, but one must have the self-control to keep their feelings from taking over and becoming something destructive like obsession."

"I suppose that has happened to some Jedi?"

"It has. Either that or they became broken-hearted, power hungry or stopped believing in the code, there have always been Jedi who left the Order and walked away from their beliefs. Many became Sith, others shut themselves off from the force completely."

"Have you ever experienced something like that? Where you felt so strongly about a person that you didn’t want to stay with the Jedi anymore?"

For a moment, he wondered if it was a good idea to tell her the truth. Obi-Wan wasn’t used to speaking to Padmé in such an informal manner, but it came natural to him. If anything, her presence was welcome and he trusted her to keep what he said to her between the two of them.

With a deep breath, he replied, "I was in love once. It was when I was a padawan. Qui-Gon and I spent a year on Mandalore protecting Duchess Satine Kryze from insurgents. We were constantly on the run from bounty hunters, living hand-to-mouth and we never knew what the next day would bring. I fell in love with her while we were on the planet, but in the end I continued with my training and was reassigned elsewhere."

Padmé’s eyes were wide as she wouldn’t have expected him to say that he fell in love. However, the more she thought about it, the more it made sense. Obi-Wan had a gentle nature and she was certain that he’d be a very devoted lover if he found the right woman.

"Would you have left the order for her?"

"I seriously considered it, but I was already committed to being a Jedi. I did feel regret for a long time and I do look back in those days with Satine in fondness. Still, I’m certain that I made the right decision."

"And this Satine...she was the only woman you’ve ever loved?"

"Yes. Leaving her was one of the most difficult things I ever had to do."

Padmé was touched by his words and she couldn’t stop feeling a small wave of envy. She had never experienced true love before. She had two relationships, but nothing came of them as neither man was right for her. Although she didn’t think she was unfulfilled, she still wondered what it would be like to feel that strongly towards a man.

Anakin was definitely not a man, not in maturity, and she enjoyed his company, but he was too familiar in his advances. If only he were wiser and discerning, maybe she’d have been interested. Anakin was very naive about the world and easily impressionable, which was very unattractive in a prospective mate. Honestly, if there were any man who best fit the criteria of a lover for her, it would be Obi-Wan.

She knew he hated politics and had a strong dislike of politicians, but he knew how to mingle with them if he had to. He already told her that he respected her, which was mainly due to the fact that he actually knew something of her character. Padmé had a feeling that he’d observed her carefully when they first met on Naboo and from their conversation, he grew to respect her a lot more than he previously did.

His nature was very disarming and lighthearted and one could easily relax around him. He was also dedicated to what he believed in and loyal to those he cared for, even when they disappointed him. They both wanted peace, but knew that there would always be those who sought to harm others and cause destruction. So they knew how and when to fight if they had to.

The more she thought about it, the more she felt like it was a shame Obi-Wan was a Jedi because he was pretty much her type. She bit her lip and turned to look at him only to find him staring at her with an intensity that made her entire body warm.

"You really believe that?" He asked her breathlessly. So he had heard that thought.

Nervously, she stuttered out a response. "Well, yes. There’s...no harm in that, is there?"

"None at all." He took hold of her hand and squeezed it gently. "I’ve found myself thinking the same thing."

Her eyes softened. How grateful she was to not be alone in this! "But it couldn’t work, could it? My life is too public and it would cause a scandal if we were in a relationship. That is, unless we kept it secret."

Now Obi raised an eyebrow, mischief written all over his features. "A secret, Padmé? Are you sure you could handle that?"

She swallowed and glanced around to see if they were alone. When no one was in their vicinity, she pressed her mouth to his in a hard kiss. It didn’t last long, just a few seconds, but it was enough to tantalize them both. He moaned when she pulled away from him, but he let her go, opting to keep his heated gaze on her.

"Does that answer your question, Obi-Wan?" She smirked.

"Oh, yes. As a matter of fact, I think we could discuss this further..."

They smiled at each other and moved to kiss again, but the sound of footsteps stopped them. One of the Jedi physicians who'd been fixing Anakin with a mechanical arm came around the corner. "Ah, Master Kenobi, Senator. The operation was a success. You can go in and see your padawan now."

"Good news. I’m sure Anakin will be eager to leave," Obi-Wan said, grinning.

Padmé sighed inwardly, but nodded. "Thank you."

"Of course." The other Jedi bowed and went back around the corner and through the double doors of the operating room.

Obi and Padmé looked at one another with a resigned smile. He spoke first. "I suppose we’d best go in before he gets curious."

"So we’ll table our discussion for later?" Her eyes were full of hope as they stood together.

His lips found her cheek in a brief peck. "Depend on it."

**Author's Note:**

> Drop by my [tumblr](https://www.tumblr.com/blog/greenfleeze) or [reys.finn](https://instagram.com/reys.finn?igshid=1o09f75amuhjg) and say hi!💞


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